Chapter 182
As the night deepened and the cold intensified, the occasional chirping of birds echoed through the woods. Afu sat motionless for a long time before regaining her senses and stopping her tears.
She stiffly got up from the ground, slung the bow over her shoulder, and didn't dare to look at Fu Cen again.
It was still pitch black outside the door. Time seemed to stretch on endlessly, and dawn was still not breaking. Afu walked unsteadily to the door, and just as she was about to leave, she suddenly heard a faint sound.
The sound came from not far away, like someone hurrying through the forest, crushing the fallen leaves underfoot, but it wasn't very clear in the wind.
Could it be that the people from Mingyue Tower found us so quickly?
Startled, Afu quickly turned and ran back, leaping out of the window and onto the roof, hiding herself in the darkness. Soon, a group of people emerged from the woods and headed straight for the manor gate. Afu frowned and focused her eyes, almost instantly spotting the striking figure in bright red among the crowd.
It's Nangong Min!
How did she end up here?
The Ziwei Sect received the news faster than the Mingyue Tower. It seems that Nangong Min was indeed lurking in the shadows, just as Meng Wugui had said. Fortunately, she arrived a step too late, otherwise…
Afton was terrified and dared not linger. Taking advantage of the fact that the Ziwei Sect followers below were making a fuss about discovering Fu Cen's corpse, she hurriedly used her lightness skill to leave the place and rushed into the forest, running for her life.
She hadn't run far when Afu gradually slowed down and stopped. She looked around blankly, as if only now realizing what Meng Wugui had said to her before leaving. Afu took two steps forward, then two steps back, lost and disoriented in the dark, deserted forest.
Where should she go?
Tears welled up in her eyes again, and unable to control herself, Afu squatted down against the tree trunk, buried her head in her knees, and sobbed.
"You saw it?" Suddenly, Meng Wugui's voice rang out in her ear.
Afu was startled, and with her eyes blurred by tears, she raised her head. Meng Wugui was standing diagonally opposite her at some point, but he didn't look at her; he was just gazing at the other side of the mountains and forests.
“Master…” Afu wiped away her tears, stood up abruptly, and looked at Meng Wugui with complicated eyes.
“The world is dangerous, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that,” Meng Wugui regained his usual composure, his previous ruthlessness and indifference gone. “If I don’t act ruthlessly tonight, I will be the one who dies. Once Nangong Min arrives, she will definitely not let me succeed in taking Fu Cen’s life, and she will join forces with Fu Cen to kill me.”
Afu paused for a moment, then asked, "How did you know Nangong Min would be coming?"
Meng Wugui chuckled, "I have my own way. Now that you've seen her with your own eyes, you should understand that Fu Cen has to die, and I'm not stupid enough to spare his life. If he hadn't fallen for my trap and accidentally ingested the Soft Fragrance Powder, and if the Fu family's inner cultivation method hadn't been so fierce and powerful, and if he hadn't been so skilled, I wouldn't have had a hard time even trapping him, let alone killing him. To do great things, you can't leave any hidden dangers for yourself." She paused, "Just like Nangong Min must be regretting now that he didn't clean up the Ruyi Sect back then, allowing me to live."
As long as Fu Cen is alive, Fu Xiang will never be able to replace him, so his death is inevitable. And a first-floor owner who is not a complete fool is not easy to deal with; given the opportunity, Meng Wugui must kill him to eliminate any future trouble.
must.
Afu said, "Even so, you shouldn't have left no trace at all. Master Fu is dead, and Senior Sister will definitely be there. Aren't you trying to destroy her spirit?"
"What's the point of dealing with this?" Meng Wugui frowned. "No matter how cleanly it's handled, won't she still guess that I killed her? By now, who doesn't know who I, Meng Wugui, really am? Who doesn't know that I want revenge? I'm different from those cowardly rats in the gutter. Some people want revenge, but they don't dare to be open and honest, nor do they dare to truly risk their lives. They only dare to do some underhanded things, frame others, and play mind games. In the end, aren't they still going to die? I don't need to hide anything, and I don't care about the world's contempt and insults. I don't care what outsiders think of me. Of course, I don't think I'm any better than the world because of this. We're all just lowlifes. I'm only a little bit better than some people. Using any means necessary to get revenge is nothing new. What am I afraid of?"
"I killed the person, I admit it, and I won't look for a scapegoat," Meng Wugui said, glancing at Afu. "From the moment I found your senior sister, I made it clear to her what would happen in the future, and she knew perfectly well. I gave her countless opportunities to protect herself, but she chose to serve me herself. Did I force her, or did I force you? Which of you didn't willingly follow me? You swore your oaths with such sincerity and emotion, but when the crucial moment came, each one of you ran away faster than the last, crying and saying that you couldn't be ruthless. Ask yourselves honestly, which of the tasks I entrusted to you was truly insurmountable?"
Afu was rendered speechless by her words.
"At first, I asked your senior sister to go to Yunhua Palace to get the Holy Sword. If she couldn't get it, so be it. I never forced her to do anything. I adjusted the plan in time so that she could get first place in the new disciple competition and return to Mingyue Tower. With her talent and the excellent martial arts she had already mastered, what difficulty would it be for her to beat those newly entered disciples? But in the end, did she rely on herself? If Yin Qiu didn't want to give way, she couldn't even beat Yin Qiu."
"Later, she became the young master of the mansion, but she accomplished nothing. Even a steward could boss her around. She never made any progress and only knew how to practice the Fu family's inner cultivation method. She would only move when I poked her, and she had no opinions or ideas of her own. I asked her to go to Weicheng to protect Yin Qiu, but did she do it? I taught her for twenty years, put in a lot of effort and gave her my true feelings, but in the end it was all for nothing. I can't wait for her to grow up. She also knew that I would choose to kill Fu Cen when I was forced to, so she can't blame me and has no right to blame me."
As night slowly faded, a faint white light appeared on the horizon. After finishing her words, Meng Wugui moved closer to Afu. Her expression softened, and she looked at Afu, saying, "Your senior sister is indecisive and unfit for great responsibilities. You're not young either; you're two or three years older than Yin Qiu, yet the two of you combined are still no match for her alone. If I had known this would happen, I shouldn't have indulged you both when you were young, letting you play and frolic all day. I didn't want to train you into emotionless assassins, but now it seems I made a grave mistake. I wasn't lying when I said I wanted to sever our master-disciple relationship. Since you can't follow me, go find your own way. You asked me to spare you and let you go, so I did. I'm giving you a chance to escape these conflicts. Go."
Afu was stunned, as if she had been hit on the head with a club, and stood there at a loss.
Meng Wugui looked at her for a while, and several times wanted to reach out and touch her head, but in the end he gave up, sighed and turned to leave.
"No, Master..." Afu saw her walking further and further away, and as if waking from a dream, she quickly followed. "I won't go... I won't go!"
Dreams have no return, no turning back.
"Master!" Afu cried out anxiously, grabbing Meng Wugui and kneeling at her feet. "Without you, I am nothing, and I don't know where to go. You are right. I am useless. I have received your kindness but I cannot help you much. I have broken my vow. Master, please take back what you said. I will listen to you... I will listen to you in everything from now on!"
“No one is indispensable,” Meng Wugui said calmly, brushing away Afu’s hand. “I have walked this path of revenge alone for so many years, and I no longer care whether anyone is by my side. These old and new grudges have nothing to do with you. You can leave whenever you want. I will not stop you. This is the last bit of mercy I can give you as your master. The road ahead will only be more difficult. You should leave as soon as possible and stop following me.”
Realizing that Meng Wugui was serious, Afu quickly hugged her again, refusing to let go no matter how Meng Wugui pushed her away. Meng Wugui, unable to bear it any longer, shouted, "You won't do what I ask you to do, and you won't leave either. What do you want?"
Afu bit her lip tightly and didn't answer.
Neither the master nor the apprentice was willing to give in, so they just stared at each other in silence.
After a long silence, Afu sobbed again, "Master Fu is dead, so there's nothing I can't do now. Master, please don't send me away, I beg you... If you hadn't taken me from the refugee camp and taught me so carefully all these years, I wouldn't be where I am today. I'd probably have been sold off long ago. Compared to my senior sister, I've never suffered any hardship. It's all thanks to Master's protection. You've spoiled me since I was little. So this time, please spoil me one more time, okay? Please don't send me away..."
Meng Wugui was silent for a moment, then closed his eyes: "I will die someday, will you still follow me?"
Afu said, "Master won't die. As long as we get revenge, the three of us will be fine. Don't you want to rebuild Ruyi Gate? We still have many things to finish."
“You’re thinking too simply,” Meng Wugui sighed. “Those who do evil deeds will never have a good end, and so will I… Get up.”
Afu stared at her intently.
Meng Wugui neither refused nor agreed. She helped the person up and then remained silent.
Afu dared not ask any more questions and could only follow Meng Wugui's footsteps. The two of them traversed the forest one after the other and left the place before the daylight was fully bright.
·
"Master, it looks like they just left not long ago." Qin Zheng squatted at the door, observing the footprints on the ground by the moonlight, and reported to Nangong Min.
The believers stood scattered, constantly casting their gazes toward the scene behind the beaded curtain, whispering among themselves and marveling at it.
Nangong Min sized up Fu Cen for a moment, tapped his fingertip on the iron cage, and said, "Impressive. You were able to kill even Fu Cen. If I were locked in this cage, I really wouldn't know how to escape."
"Should we send someone to pursue them?" Qin Zheng asked.
"What are you chasing?" Nangong Min glanced sideways. "Who among you can beat Meng Wugui?"
"Should we inform Mingyue Tower as soon as possible?" Qin Zheng said. "Fu Cen is dead, which will surely cause a huge uproar in the martial arts world. Meng Wugui has committed such a heinous crime, so we don't need to deal with her. She will become the public enemy of the martial arts world."
Nangong Min sneered, "You really are as stupid as ever, you haven't improved at all." Seeing Qin Zheng's puzzled look, she explained, "Anyone can notify Mingyue Tower, but we can't. Do you want outsiders to pin this crime on our Ziwei Sect? Meng Wugui would be happy to do that. Besides, no one saw her kill anyone, so who would consider her a public enemy of the martial arts world?"
“But this mechanism is clearly made by the Nine Immortals Hall. No one would think of any other sect if they came here,” Qin Zheng said.
"So what? Is it really impossible to buy the mechanism from Jiuxiantang?" Nangong Min said. "Meng Wugui left this place exactly as it was, without making any changes, because she didn't want to cover things up. She knows that she can't hide it from those she should, so there's no need to conceal it. And if outsiders see this mechanism, even if they want to get their hands on Jiuxiantang, who would dare to confront them? Jiuxiantang could simply say that the mechanism was secretly sold long ago, and those righteous heroes would naturally exonerate them, saying that the murderer had ulterior motives and deliberately left the murder weapon at the crime scene to frame Jiuxiantang. Tell me, without concrete evidence, who can do anything to Meng Wugui?"
“This person is indeed not easy to deal with,” Qin Zheng said. “You are right. It’s not the highly skilled martial artists that are scary, but the people who will do anything for revenge. Sect Leader, Meng Wugui cannot be underestimated. She has taken over Mingyue Tower this time, which poses a great threat to our Ziwei Sect. We must find an opportunity to get rid of her.”
“She has both,” Nangong Min said. “That makes things even more complicated. Meng Wugui is skilled and resourceful. She is usually low-key and has the Nine Immortals Hall as a cover. Now she also has the Bright Moon Pavilion at her disposal. Even I, the sect leader, can’t do anything about her. What should we do to get rid of her as soon as possible?”
As Qin Zheng was pondering, Nangong Min continued, "But what I want to know more about now is, I told you to have people keep a close eye on her movements, how come you only told me Meng Wugui would make a move tonight after Fu Cen was already dead? She's so efficient, it seems she knew I would arrive at the opportune moment to stop her, so she made sure everything was done cleanly and efficiently." She smiled softly, leaning slightly forward to look at Qin Zheng, "How did she know I was coming?"
Qin Zheng was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly knelt down and said, "Master... do you suspect your subordinate?"
Nangong Min smiled but remained silent.
"Your subordinate is utterly loyal to the Ziwei Sect, Heaven can bear witness!" Qin Zheng declared emphatically. "We can keep an eye on her, but she might just be keeping an eye on us in return. This person is shrewd; it's not surprising that she could guess our countermeasures!"
Nangong Min scrutinized her for a moment, then laughed, "What are you panicking about? You're such a coward." She straightened up, lifted her leg, and stepped out of the hall. "Since things have come to this, there's no need to linger here. Go do what you need to do."
Qin Zheng was terrified and broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing this, she quickly followed Nangong Min and asked, "Then, Master, please give your instructions on what we should do next?"
Nangong Min looked around, then turned around and picked up a sharp arrow from the ground. She examined the arrow for a long time before finally saying, "She killed Fu Cen, and I'll kill Fu Xiang. What do you think?"
Qin Zheng asked, "How do we kill them?"
"Go and capture that Afu," Nangong Min said. "Meng Wugui might not care whether she lives or dies, but Fu Xiang will never let her fall into our hands. As long as she comes to rescue Afu, we can surround and kill her. Without Fu Xiang, how will Meng Wugui control Mingyue Tower?"
Qin Zheng was initially delighted upon hearing this, but then hesitated and said, "But once Afu disappears, Meng Wugui will guess our intentions. She will definitely keep a close watch on Fu Xiang and won't let her come to our Ziwei Sect to rescue people."
Nangong Min smiled and said softly, "If no one comes to our aid, then we should kill Afu. That girl has excellent lightness skills and archery skills; keeping her around will only be detrimental to us. Meng Wugui first killed Fu Cen, and then refused to help Afu. Even if Fu Xiang is devoted to her, these two things combined will probably make her disheartened. A divisive tactic, how effective is that?"
As she recounted her story, Qin Zheng clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Master, what skill you have!"
Nangong Min gave her a cryptic look, casually tossed the arrow aside, and said, "Then Protector Qin, you'd better do this well and don't disappoint me."
Qin Zheng lowered her head and said, "Rest assured, Master, I will certainly live up to your expectations."
Nangong Min patted her shoulder and said softly, "That would be for the best. I'm waiting for your good news." After she finished speaking, she walked down the steps and continued, "Now that Protector Wen is gone, I, the leader, have lost a capable assistant. I can only rely on you for many things."
She turned to look at Qin Zheng and smiled faintly: "You'd better be more reliable than her, or I might kick you out one day too."
Qin Zheng frowned almost imperceptibly.
If Wen Chaoyu is kicked out, she'll be free; if she's kicked out, she'll die without a burial place.
Qin Zheng was unwilling, but she could only obediently agree: "Your subordinate understands. Please rest assured, Master, I will do my best to handle this matter for you."
“Very good,” Nangong Min said with a pleasant expression, “I await your good news.”
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